Cookstoves for Kids

Deforestation is at an all-time high in Malawi, threatening the planet and costing impoverished communities valuable time and money. This project helps to feed kids and conserve resources by installing clean cookstoves that use less wood and emit less CO₂. The project serves 327,000 students and, with your help, we can climb closer to our goal of a million students served. Bottom Line: By providing schools with clean cookstoves, we can feed kids, save trees and reduce carbon pollution and raise the hopes of communities and the planet.

Each stove uses 75% less wood than a traditional fire saving tonnes of CO₂ emissions. Malawi is among the world’s least developed countries and deforestation rates are extremely high, so this project could spark much-needed change saving trees that absorb harmful greenhouse gases. The goal is to install stoves in more than 1,000 schools that will feed hundreds of thousands of students while reducing CO₂ emissions from traditional ways of cooking. That’s what we call a positive development.

The forests of Malawi, the planet and kids. Every penny counts in Malawi, and your donation will support the building of cookstoves that save schools money so they can buy books and supplies. Students will benefit from improved classroom conditions, cleaner air and delicious meals.

Happy Students, Happy Planet

Mai Aisha is a home for 225 orphaned children in Malawi. After their new cookstove was installed, firewood use was cut in half and the money saved went directly to stuff that really matters such as school supplies. The happy and healthy atmosphere at Mai Aisha is a tribute to the valuable impact that this project has on the lives of young people throughout Malawi.

• We used to spend MK3,500 (equivalent to $4) on firewood per day before Mayankho and now the Trust is spending MK1,500 (equivalent to $2) per week or less. – Children of Blessings Trust
• Immediately when we switched from our old conventional three-stone stove to these fixed stoves, we started spending less on firewood, and there is always less smoke when cooking. The stove keeps heat thereby making the food cook faster while using a few pieces of firewood. The pots are fixed on the stove making cooking food like Nsima* very easy and smarter. – Robina, Children of Blessings Trust for support for disabled children

Malawi tops the list of the world’s least developed countries. Among the numerous efficient cookstove projects we have reviewed, this one stands out as an extremely important initiative. Rates of deforestation and the nonrenewable status of woody biomass fuel are extremely high in Malawi (81 percent, source: UNFCCC), hence this project will contribute greatly to conserving the forests while also reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

—Sid Yadav, CEO Global Offset Research